Viviane Reding, EU Commissioner for Justice, said: "The protection of personal data is a fundamental right. To guarantee this right, we need clear and consistent data protection rules. We also need to bring our laws up to date with the challenges raised by new technologies and globalisation."

The Commission will propose legislation next year to improve individual's rights while also making it easier to share data within Europe. Any laws will include results of the Commission's recent public consultation on the matter.

The Commission proposes:

Stronger rights for individuals. People should be clearly told what information is stored on them and why, and by whom. They should also have the "right to be forgotten" - to get their data deleted.

By making data protection standard between countries the burden for companies which need to transfer data between nations will be reduced.